Continuous drawing of stock



April 17, 1956 M. MEYERBACH CONTINUOUS DRAWING OF STOCK 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 5, 1949 IN V EN TOR. MAX MEYERBACH A T TORNE Y April 17, 1956 M. MEYERBACH 2,742,144

CONTINUOUS DRAWING OF STOCK Filed March 5, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVEN TOR. MA X ME YERBAOH 7 ATTORNEY April 17, 1956 Filed March 5, 1949 84 T FROM HIGH T PRESSURE w PUMP so? 8! l a? 89 OUT N 66 RETURN T PIPETO T:T s7 TANK 68 Q 4 75 I: F J

NEUTRAL INVENTOR MAX MEYERBACH BY ZJ/M M. MEYERBACH CONTINUOUS DRAWING OF STOCK 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 ATTORNEY April 17, 1956 M. MEYERBACH CONTINUOUS DRAWING OF STOCK 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed March 5, 1949 Fig. 1;

Patented Apr. 17, 1956 nited States Patent 2,742,144 CONTINUOUS DRAWING OF STOCK Max Meyerhach, NewsYork, N. Y., assignor to LoIna Machine Manufacturing (10., Inc., a corporation of Delaware Application March 5, 1949, Serial No. 79,750 1 6 Claims. Cl. 205-22 ,of rapid adjustment of r the pressure of the gripping mechanism towards. the stock. Moreover, present'machines of that type make no integral provisions for gripping the tip of the stock when it first emerges from the forming element; nor do they provide for automatic adjustment, during continuous operation, of. the gripping" pressure in relation to the pulling load.

It is therefore one of the principal objects of the invention to provide a machine for continuous drawing of stocks which obviates the deficiency of the prior art, and admits of manual as well as automatic drawing pressure adjustment.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a machine of this type with a strong pressure mechanism for firmly gripping the stock, the pressure being adjustable corresponding to the resistance load against drawing of the stock.

A further object of the invention is to provide a-machine of this type withtwo drives to grip the stock therebetween, each drive being movable independently of the other for adjustment. s i

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a link system in connection with each such drive permitting substantiallyparallel movement and continuous driving from a common motor, of both drives irrespective of the location to which either drive may have been moved. 7

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the following specification and in part will be obvious therefrom without being specifically referred to, the same being realized and attained as pointed out in the claims hereof.

With the above and other objects of the invention in view, the invention consists in the novel construction,

arrangement and combination of various devices, elements and parts, as set forth, in the claims hereof, certain embodiments of the same being illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the specification.

In'the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view, partlyin elevation of a machine, in accordance with the invention, taken along line 11 of Fig. 2,

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2.-2 of Fig. 3 is a rectified sectional view taken along line 33 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a conduit diagram.

In carrying the invention vintoeffect in the embodiments which have been selected for illustration in the accompanying'drawings and for description in this specification, and referring now particularly to Fig. l, a machine for the drawing of stock is shown having a frame 10 mounted on supporting legs 11 and 12. A stock forming element such as adrawing die 13 is mounted on the frame at one longitudinal end thereof. The stock which may be either solid, suchas wire, or which may be hollow stock, such as tubing, and the like is entered into the drawing die 13 to be drawn therethrough and the stock is deposited conventionally near said drawing die, for instance, in form ofa coil if the stock be a wire (which has not been shown in the drawings).

A drawing mechanism is indicatedin the views and comprises two oppositely." disposed drives for propelling the stock therebetween, an upper drive 14 and a lower drive 15. Each of these drives is movable towards and from the other drive between two extreme positions and is linked for such movement to the frame as will be explained later on.

Each drive has a driving pulley and a driven pulley and an endless stock clamp suspended therebetween, the upper drive 14 having a driving pulley 16 and an idler pulley 17 and an endless stock clamp 18 held thereon to be driven thereby; conversely, the lower drive 15 has a driving pulley 19, an idler pulley 21 and an endless stock clamp 22.

' Each of the endless stock clamps 18 and 22 is composed of a chain having a plurality of links 23 and 24 connected in alternation to each other; the pressure exerting links 24 rollers 25 to be used in connection with a pair of tongs as set forth further below.

Each pulley is provided with transporting means such as sprockets having notches therebetweenwhich notches are adapted to receive the small links 23. The .chainlfi of the upper drive 14 has a lower segment 26 which is arranged adjacent and parallel to the upper segment 27 of the lower chain drive 22. 7 Between these segments 26 and 27 the stock is drawn in the directionof the arrow 28 as best shown in Fig. 1. The idler pulleys 1'7 and 21 are provided with eccentric journals 29 and 30, respectively, for'tensioning the chain in a conventional manner. Each chain is mounted between a driving pulley and an idler pulley to form'a'n oblong loop therebetween, and the working links 24 of the chain are straight in the longitudinal direction on the outside of said loop in order to grip the surface of the stock without damaging the same-during the drawing operation. If desired, the faces of the links 24 may furthermore be profiled in accordancev with'the stock to be drawn. In order to prevent spreading apart of the segments 26 and 27 from one another, and in order to exert pressure from these segments to the stock there is provided in each drive aseries of hardened rollers 32, which may be connected in a chain 31 and that roller chain 31 is also suspended between, but free of the drive of the pulleys, and is freely movable. 1 The roller chain 31 is positioned on the inside of th 7 loop formed by the stock clamp chain and adjacent to and finally to the chain. Thus the links 24 of themain chains only are subjected to .a rolling friction against the rollers 32 which in turn roll on theg-uide 33, and the main chain links do not have to slide on any stationary surface.

The driving pulley 16 of the upper drive 141's provided with gear 34 and the driving pulley 19 of the lower drive 15 is provided with gear 35. The gear 34 is in mesh with a gear 36 for driving the pulley 16 and .the gear 35 is in meshwith a gear 37 for driving the 'pulley 19, and the gears 36 and 37 are in mesh with one another. The

pulley gears 35 and 34 may, as shown in Fig. 1, have the same diameter. By this arrangement a rotation of the gear 36 in the direction of an arrow 38 will simultaneously cause rotation of the gears 34 and 35 in opposite directions at equal speed, thereby propelling both chains 18 and 22 in the direction of the arrow 28. The links of both drives always face each other in order to provide proper clamping.

The upper drive 14 is mounted on a movable platen 39 and the lower drive 15 is mounted on a movable platen 41. Each of these platens is movable to and from the other platen in such a manner that the segments 26 and 27 always remain parallel to each other regardless of the size of the gap therebetween to which the drives may I 43 and each link is pivoted at one end to the platen 39 and at the other end to the frame 10. The distances between the pivot points of each of the links 42 and 43 are equal to each other and in turn are equal to the distance between the center of the pulley gear 34 and'the gear 36. The center lines between the pivot points of each of the links 42 and 43 are parallel to each other and in turn parallel to the center line between the center of the gear 34 and the center of the gear 36. Thereby, as will be apparent, the center of the gear 34 will move along the periphery of a circle. about the center of the gear36 and therefore the gears 36 and 34 will always be in mesh independently of the position to which the platen 39 is moved. The platen 39 is restrained by the system of the links 42 and 43 to move parallel with regard to the opposite drive, for instance, if the chain segment 26 is disposed horizontally in one position of the drive 14 it will always be horizontal in any position to which it may be moved.

The lower drive 15 is suspended by a similar link system, the links 44 and 45 being pivoted to the platen 41, at one of their ends, and to the frame with the other ends. The links 44 and 45 are parallel to each other and parallel to the center line between the centers of the gears 35 and 37, and the distance between pivot points of each of the links 44 and 45 are equal to the distance between the centers of the gears 35 and 37. Thereby, the gear 35 will always be in mesh with the gear 37 and the platen 41 will be restricted in its movement in directions to and from the drive 14 and in any position being parallel thereto.

The actuation of displacement of the lower drive is as follows:

The platen 41 is provided at one side with two inelin'ed surfaces or edges 46 and 47; opposite thereto there are provided, on the frame 10, corresponding surfaces or edges 48 and 49 respectively, forming an angle with the edges 46 and 47; in Figure 1 it has been assumed that these edges 43 and 49are disposed horizontally but may, if desired, also be at an angle to the horizontal direction.

lifting of the drive 15 to a predetermined position, an adjustable stop mechanism is provided for the movement of the wedges 51 and 52. For this purpose, the rod 53 is provided with an adjusting nut 55, the position of which may be changed on the red by turning it along a thread thereof in accordance with a scale 56 that is gauged corresponding to the thickness of the stock to be drawn; the nut is arranged to abut against a stationary element 57 that is mounted on the frame 10.

When the piston of the hydraulic cylinder 54 is actasted, the wedges 51 and 52 will move (leftward, Figure 1) until the nut 55 abuts against the element 57 and brings the movement to a stop. The wedges during that movement will have raised the platen 41 and thereby the position of the chain segment 27 to a predetermined height, and upon return of the piston the wedges 51 and 52 will move in the opposite direction (rightward, Figure l); thereupon, the platen will move downwardly under its own gravity where the platen is vertically disposed as, for instance, in Figure 1; a retraction spring 58 is pro vided'insuring contact between the edges and the wedges; where, however, gravitational force does not apply, the retraction spring 58 alone will cause the platen 41 to move away from the platen 39. Separate stops (not shown) may be provided for the normal rest position of the platen 41 corresponding to the retracted position of the piston.

The upper drive 14 is displaced by a separate mechanism. An hydraulic press 59 is mounted on the frame 10 and is provided with a stationary cylinder 61 and a piston 62 that is movable in said cylinder. The piston 62' is provided with a piston rod 63 that abuts against a thrust plate which in turn abuts against the upper section of the platen 39. A connectingrod 65 is interconnected to the piston 62 and the platen 39 for retraction of the latter. A downward movement of the piston 62 will cause pressure to be exerted against the thrust plate 60 and, in turn, transmit the pressure to the platen 39 Due to the link system of the platen 41, the angle referred to always remains the same in any position to which the drive 15 may be moved.

Two wedge elements 51 and 52 are provided, between the edges 46 and 48 and the edges 47 and 49, respectively, the wedge 51 being movable on the surface 48 and to lower the same; an upward movement of the piston 62 will retract the platen 39 by means of the connecting rod 65.

The power transmission to the drives 14 and 15 is constructed as follows, as best shown in Figure 3: A pulley 66 is driven from a motor (not shown) and in turn drives a gear 67 that is mounted on a first shaft 68. The rotation of the pulley 66 may be transmitted to'the first shaft 68 either directly by means of a clutch 69, which may be of the multiple disc friction type, or indirectly by means of planetary gears 71 in mesh with a gear ring and the gear 68, and driving, at reduced speed, a sleeve 72 on which the planetary gears 71 are mounted and a rotation of which may be transmitted to the'first shaft 68 by means of clutch 73. The clutch 73 may be of the same type as the clutch 69. A shifting element 74 is provided for the clutch 69 and a second shifting element 75 is provided for the clutch 73. These elements 74 and 75 are rigidly mounted on a shifting rod 76 which is shiftable by the actuation of a manually operable lever mechanism 77.

This shifting permits changing the drive from high speed to low speed position and to an idling position therebetween.

Said first shaft 68 carries a helical gear 78 which is in mesh with another helical gear 79 that is mounted on a second shaft 81. While the first shaft 68 is prevented from shifting axially, said second shaft 81 is shiftable axially in addition to being rotatable, as explained further below.

. 69.01 J3 to the first'shaft 68, from the gear 78 to the gears 79, 82,: 83 and 36 in succession and from there to the gears, 34 and 37 and 35, respectively, in order to drive the pulleys 16 and 19.

Thetforce with which the two chains 18 and 22 are pressed together is made dependent on the pulling force or load,.required to draw the stock through the forming element or die 13. This effect is obtained by means of the helical gear 79 that is rigidly mounted on the second shaft ,81 to receive an axial thrust. This thrust is transmittedto a valve piston 85 that is secured at one end of the shaft 81 and disposed in a pressure regulating valve housing 8.6 which regulates the pressure of high pressure liquid through said valve housing 86. The greater the load the greater will be the tendency of the shaft 81 to move leftwardj(Fig. 3) thereby closing the valve 37 whereby the conduit for the high pressure liquid remains unobstructed. By this valve position continued delivery 20 of high pressure liquid to the cylinder 61 is maintained.

Onth'e other hand, decreasing load will cause the shaft 81 to move rightwardtFig. 3) under the pressure of the liquid tl'ius opening the valve 87 and permitting liquid to flowthrough the passages 88 and 39 back to the tank for the liquid; in that valve position the pressure in the cylinder 61 willbe decreased to reduce the force with which the two chains are pressed together without, however, necessitating a regulation of the high pressure pump.

;The elements'of the circuit for the pressure liquids are illustrated in the diagram of Fig. 4; the cylinders 54 and 61 :are shown in-t-hat view, and each is adapted to be connected to a pump in order "to receive pressure liquid. Describing the circuit in detail, a moto'r'lltli drives a sma-ll:volume, high pressure pump :102 and simultaneously-arlarge volume lowpressure pump 103; atank 104 is insevera-l-of; the elements where this connection is symbolisedby the letterT. Actually, there are two circuits,

nainely allow pressure :and a high pressure circuit, the

former bein used for rapid movement of the clamps and the latter used to provide the working pressure. The low pressure circuit consists of'the pump 103 that isinterconnected to an accumulator 105, by means of a pressure regulating unloading valve 106; the valve 106 maintains a predetermined pressure in the accumulator 105, for in: stance 'of 5 00 p.;s.='i: (pounds per square inch). The accumulator -5 is furthermore connected to a pressure gauge. 107 andis interconnected by mcansof pipes 103 and 109 to the underside of the piston 62 of the cylinder 61;-the piston 62 preferably is constructed as a differential piston, which means that the pressure applied to the underside ,(retracti on side) must approximately be twice the pressure applied-to theupper surface (pressure side) iii order to keep the piston in balance.

The accumulatoi 105 is. furthermore connected by m ans of he previously mentioned pipe 108, over a ch eck 111 and pipe 112, unidirectiona lly with a solenoid d rear-way valve 113 that controls the pipe c'onr'iction of the cylinder This valve 113 is of conventional'type and after being energized, as shown in Fig.4, is-iii'ap'osition' wherein the pipe 112 is connected to the pressureside of the piston of the cylinder 54 by means of V the v'alve points P and B. At the same time the accumulator 105 is also connected through the pipe 100, the

check valve 111 and a pipe 114, to the upper side. of

,both hydraulic cylinders are actuated. The high pressure circuit which may, for instance, be set at 2,000 p. s. i. in-

cludes'the pump 102, a relief valve 117 at the beginning 6 of the pipe leading therefrom and includes two conduit branches, one designated 118 leading over the checkvalve 119 towards the cylinder 54 and to the four-way valve 113 and then by way of the pipes 112 andlldto the upper side of the piston 62; the other branch includes the pipe 121 which leads to an automatic relief valve 122 that may be set on a range from SOD-2,000 p. s. i in accordance with the size of the stock drawn, and also leads over a shut-01f valve 123 to the load valve 87, that is controlled by the load thrust, as was explained hereinbefore. Said load valve 87 may be pre-loaded by a spring Furthermore, there is provided on the. piston of the cylinder 54 a means of operating a limit switch 126, consisting, for instance, of a projection 124 on the underside of the wedge 52 and which is adapted to cooperate with ,7 the limit switch 126 that is located inthe path of said terconnectedtoboth pumps and is also interconnected to projection .124, to be operated thereby when the piston is through a predetermined length of path. Said limit switch 126 is adapted to operate the solenoid (not shown) which in turn operates the four-way valve 116. Thesolenoid of the valve 113 is manually operable by push-button.

The control of the high pressure circuit ism'aintained by the automatic relief valve 122 which is always interconnected to the high pressure circuit. Said circuit may furthermore be controlled by the load valve 87 depending upon the position to which 'the shuteofi valve 123 'is be* ing put. In one position it blocks 06 the valve 87. particu' larly the control of therelief fvalve 122 and in the other position (that shownin Fig. 4) it connects the pipe 121 with the valve 87 for maintaining control by said valve 87. At the start of theioperation the circuit is controlledby the relief valve 122, and after an initial running period the operator will switch the'valve 123 to load-valve-contr'ol 87. Theshut-oif valve 123 may be replaced by an elec* trical operated, time controlled valve. E Inthe" running'pos'ition the piston of the cylinders 54 andfill are both actuated from the high pressure pump, therebyinsuring therequired gripping of the stock between the drives. The low pressure circuit is shut ofi by the check valve. Whenever the stock is gripped by ex cessive ,pressure,-theload valve 8'7 will operate-and connect the pump 102 to the tank thereby relieving the pressure. Moreover, if excessive pressure develops the relief valve 122 connects the high pressure circuit to the tank.

Upon push-button startof the valve 113 and the result ing actuation of the cylinder 54, the projection 124 will operate the limit switch 126; thereupon the solenoid will operate the valve 116'. After completion of a drawing operation, the solenoids may be deenergized, either by hand or automatically, and thereby in the valves connections are formed of B with T and P with A. Thereby both pressure sides of the cylinders 54 and 61 will be connected to the tank and the retraction side of the cylinder 54 willbe connected to the pipe 112 and thus to the accumulator for retraction of the piston. -Likewise, the continued connection of the accumulator by means of the pipe 109. to the inside of the piston 62-will retract the same.

In the past, the passing of the stock through the drawing'die at thefbeginning of the operation was associated very often with inconvenience. In order to feed the first end of the stock through the die 13 and to advance it to a point between the chains 18 and 22, the pointed end of the stock is preferably first gripped by a gripper such as wedge type tongs 91, which may be hooked onto the rollers 25 of the chain links 23. Thereby a sufficiently long piece of stock may be positioned between the chains before they are pressed together to start the continuous drawing of the stock. For this purpose, the platens 39 92 which are of the conventional closing wedge type.

The other end 93 of the tongs is provided with a shoulder that may be gripped by the rollers 25, and then the power drive isstarted. The tongs slide in rails 94 which guide the tongs during their movement from the die 13 and in alignment therewith (as shown in Fig. 2) towards the other end of the frame to an end position. After the first pair of opposite rollers 25 has released the shoulder of the tongs, the following pair of rollers 25 presses against the front end of the tongs to move them into final rest position clear of the drawing mechanism for the stock.

Thereafter, the drives 14 and 15 are pressed together to clamp the stock for continuous drawing. During the gripping of the stock with the tongs 91 it is preferable to operate the drive at slow speed and this is accomplished by shifting the shifting lever mechanism 77 t0 the position where the planetary gearing operates the transmission at slow speed. After the grippers 91 are moved into their end position, the drives 1'4 and 15 are brought to engage the'stocktherebetween, and the continuous drawing operation is begun.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the novel principles of the invention disclosed herein in connection with specific exemplifications thereof will suggest various other modifications and applications of the same. It is accordingly desired that in construing the breadth of the appended claims they shall not be limited to the specific'exemplifications of the invention described herein.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to be secured by Letters Patent, is as follows: t

1. In a stock feeding machine, drawing mechanism comprising in combination: two oppositely disposed drives at least one being movable in its entirety inopposite directions to and from a normal stock clamping position and each including an endless stock clamp and means for holding and driving the same, each clamp having a v series of segments, each segment in said normal position being-disposed adjacent and opposite a segment 'of the other for. clamping therebetween and propelling said stock, transmission means for transmitting power to said driving means, and including a plurality of interconnected gears, and actuating means controlled by fluid pressure and operable for moving a drive in at least one of said 7 opposite directions for clamping said stock, one pair of said gears having teeth forming an angle with the axis of rotation of a gear, whereby the load transmitted by said gears will result in an axial thrust of said gears, one of said gears having inclined teeth being mounted floating in axial direction, pressure-sensitive means mounted adjacent said floating borne gear for receiving pressuretherefrom corresponding to the axial thrust transmitted by the load to said gear, fluid conduits operably connecting said pressure-sensitive means to said actuating means, whereby the pressure-sensitive means is so 'arranged as to adjust the pressure of said actuating means exerted against said drive.

2. In a stock feeding machine, drawing mechanism,

' comprising in combination: two oppositely disposed drives each movablein its entirety between two extreme positions towards and from the other drive and each including an endless stock clamp and means for holding and driving the same, each clamp having a segment disposed adjacent and opposite that of the other for clamping therebetween and propelling said stock, means operatively connected to said driving means for driving the same, a plurality of rollers carried by each drive and disposed adjacent each of said clamping segments to receive pressure transmitted by said segments from the stock, a rolling surface associated with each drive and disposed adjacent said rollers of each drive and being stationary with regard to said stock clamps for providing abutment for said rollers to take up said pressure, and hydraulic pressure means including a pressure energizer and conduits connected to said pressure means and including a valve regulator connected to said driving means and comprising a translating device to convert torque force to thrust force and operable in response to changes in' the drawing load for clamping said stock at a pressure dependentupon the drawing load.

3. In a stock feeding machine, drawing mechanism comprising in combination: two oppositely disposed movable drives, arranged to clamp and to propel said stock therebetween, a link system associated with one of said drives for movement thereof in its entirety in opposite directions, said link system including two links each having a certain pivotal length and parallel to the other and pivoted at one end to said drive and at the other end to a fixed point, each drive having an endless stock clamp and means for holding and driving said endless clamp comprising a pulley and a gear mounted thereon, means for transmitting power to said drive, including a train of gears the axis of the last year of said train adjacent said pulley gear being spaced from the axis of said pulley gear for said certain distance and the shortest distance between the axes of said last and pulley gears being in all'positions disposed in a direction parallel to said links, whereby a movement of said drive being defined by said link system will always maintain said last gear of the train in mesh with said pulley gear. 1

4. In a continuous stock drawing machine, the combination with opposite drives adapted to transport there between stock and power transmission means, of hydraulic pressure means associated with one of said drives and adapted to pressthe same towards the other drive, said pressure means comprising a pressure chamber stationary with respect to said drive, a piston connected to said drive and movableupon actuation, and actuating means including pressurized liquid carrying conduits, said piston adapted to move said drive in opposite directions for increasing and decreasing the pressure between said drives, and adjusting means connected to said actuating means and including a'valve regulator in a conduit, said power transmission means comprising a translating device for converting torque forceto thrust force and in driving connection with said valve regulatorand operable for automatically adjusting the pressure-within said pressure chamber in response to the drawing load.

5. A pressure adjusting mechanism, for use in connection with a stock drawing machine including pressure means for clamping said stock, said adjusting mechanism comprising stock clamps applied to said stock for drawing the same against the resistance load thereof and including a driving rotor, and a rotary torque take-up element rotatably connected, with relation, to said driving rotor and having means responsive to said load for converting torque force applied into an axial thrust, and a mechanism operable by said thrust responsive means for changing the pressure of said pressure means.

6. In a stock feeding machine, a feed mechanism comprising two oppositely disposed drives, at least one of said drives being movable in opposite direction, each drive including an endless stock clamp for holding'and driving the stock, each clamp having a segment disposed adjacent and opposite that of the other for clamping therebetween and propelling saidstock, a transmission 'for transmitting power to said. driving means, and actuating means controlled by hydraulic pressure and operable for moving said movable .drive in at least one of saidopposite directions for clamping said stock, said transmission including a transmission element in driving connection with said drives and a'torque element operable able to adjust the pressure thereof exerted against said movable drive.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Haas Apr. Greenfield Oct. Lloyd Jan. Mellen May Lloyd Nov. Friel Nov. Sjobring Jan. Hornberger Dec. 

